Bill Young enlisted in the Australian Army in 1941 at the age if fifteen. He was a member of the 2/29th Battalion that went to Singapore with the Eighth Division. Young was wounded in action, became a prisoner of war and transferred to Sandakan with 'B' Force on the 17 July 1942. A failed escape attempt led to imprisonment in the Outram Road Gaol in Singapore. Young survived and told the story of his and his contemporaries' experiences through his art, writing, speeches and work in school education programs.
Source: The Borneo POW Story website, www.borneopow.info (sighted: 17/6/2008)